Massive and brilliantly-illustrated, 'Playing Soldier' is a comprehensive survey of the books, printed ephemera, and toys relating to military life and wartime experience that were published or produced for children and teens during two consecutive but dramatically different periods: first, the era from the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 until the outbreak of the Great War in 1914; and second, the 51 months of fighting that comprised "the war to end all wars." The book demonstrates how these publications and ...
Read More
Massive and brilliantly-illustrated, 'Playing Soldier' is a comprehensive survey of the books, printed ephemera, and toys relating to military life and wartime experience that were published or produced for children and teens during two consecutive but dramatically different periods: first, the era from the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 until the outbreak of the Great War in 1914; and second, the 51 months of fighting that comprised "the war to end all wars." The book demonstrates how these publications and products were used to persuade boys to admire and wish to become soldiers and sailors, and to accept war as an inevitable form of human behavior that offered them a swift path to manhood requiring acts of exceptional bravery, selfless service, and patriotic devotion.
Read Less
